Posted by John Davis on 10 October 2017
How Cancer Research UK started early clinical development of Eli Lilly's Cdc7 Inhibitor
The drug development arm of the UK charity, Cancer Research UK, has started early clinical development of potentially a new type of anticancer, a Cdc7 inhibitor, discovered by Eli Lilly, in an effort that could boost traction in this new area of research.
The extended article explores what that development will look like as well as the range of Cdc7 inhibitors around at the moment. Download the full article that originally appeared on Scrip here.
The Centre for Drug Development of the UK’s leading cancer charity, Cancer Research UK, announced Aug. 23 it will start testing a novel type of anticancer from Eli Lilly & Co. under its partnership scheme that aims to make sure promising compounds don't fall through the cracks of industry's development processes.
It will evaluate the tolerability of Eli Lilly’s LY3143921 in a Phase I study of oral doses given daily for 21 days, and repeated up to 12 times. It will also establish the recommended dose in patients with various cancers including advanced bowel, lung ovarian, urothelial, pancreatic, breast, head and neck, and oesophageal cancer.
The Centre’s mission is to find new ways to treat cancer, and the charity sponsors and funds the early clinical development of compounds that it believes are of interest because of their mode of action, although the originating company retains all underlying rights to their programs. The compounds usually come from companies that are not prioritizing their development, and Lilly does seem to have a full plate when it comes to potential novel anticancers.
As well as waiting US approval for the cyclin-dependent kinase (CDK) 4/6 inhibitor, abemaciclib, in two breast cancer indications, Lilly also outlined a revamped oncology R&D strategy a month ago, which included an ERK1/2 inhibitor that is in Phase I, a CHK1 inhibitor, prexasertib, under evaluation for ovarian cancer, and a TIM-3 checkpoint inhibitor monoclonal antibody (see sidebar).
Under Cancer Research UK’s clinical development partnership scheme, companies can decide after the completion of the charity’s clinical studies if they want to develop the product or to allow the charity to search for another development partner, whilst retaining a share in any future revenues.
Download the full article that originally appeared on Scrip here.
About John Davis - A journalist and editor for more than 30 years, John has a broad interest in pharmaceuticals-related health care policy and breakthroughs in scientific and medical research. He has degrees in biology and biochemical pharmacology.